An area as poor as New Orleans needed funds to pay for the engineering projects that would’ve staved off the disaster in the making. The money never arrived. This vignette is a running theme in Tidwell’s book. Manmade environmental damage in the form of disappearing wetlands is only part of the story. Coastal cities, such as New York, Miami and Baltimore, are vulnerable to damage comparable to New Orleans. Melting icecaps, already in evidence, are causing the sea to rise. Warmer ocean temperatures already are creating hurricanes of unusual strength. Author Mike Tidwell, founder of the Chesapeake Climate Action Committee, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Congo Kinshasa.

New Orleans wasn’t always a fishbowl. Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” tells us that the human influence on nature has brought Earth to the brink of disaster. Evidence of our impending doom was a hurricane called Katrina. Can we pull ourselves back from the precipice?

Katrina wasn’t the cause of the New Orleans disaster, of course. It began when the early French settlers dammed the Mississippi River.

Normally, shrinking soil would be replenished through flooding. The levees prevented it from happening. As a result, Tidwell says, Louisiana loses 50 acres each day to the Gulf of Mexico.

It was common knowledge in 1999, when Cajun shrimpers first told Tidwell about the problem.

Indeed, locals were keenly aware of the dangerous landscape and requested help from Washington.

An area as poor as New Orleans needed funds to pay for the engineering projects that would’ve staved off the disaster in the making. The money never arrived.

This vignette is a running theme in Tidwell’s book. Manmade environmental damage in the form of disappearing wetlands is only part of the story. Coastal cities, such as New York, Miami and Baltimore, are vulnerable to damage comparable to New Orleans. Melting icecaps, already in evidence, are causing the sea to rise. Warmer ocean temperatures already are creating hurricanes of unusual strength.

If the cold facts don’t get the reader’s attention, Tidwell has sprinkled anecdotal evidence throughout the book.

A warmer Alaska creates problems for a tiny Inupiat village that has no words for wildlife migrating towards them.

In 2005, 70 million acres of ice melted in the Artic Ocean and a large number of polar bears drowned.

A farmer reconsiders his livelihood in the face of unseasonable and unpredictable weather.

Dialogue with reader

This book is a dialogue between the author and the reader. Tidwell anticipates arguments with an articulate rebuttal.

The parallels between our current situation and the self-inflicted end of the Polynesian island are astonishing.

If you are waiting for the federal government to take action, you’ll be waiting a long time.

Laced between evidence of our impending demise, Tidwell laments the lack of response by the federal government.

It’s as if the fossil fuel lobby had some kind of hold over politicians. The only solution is through individual action, and there’s plenty to do.

Tidwell’s solutions range from switching to an energy efficient refrigerator to installing a corn stove.

The ideas won’t seem radical, especially to those living in rural areas. Most importantly, his solutions will ultimately save the reader money.

The conversational tone and tightly structured arguments make this book an easy read, and a highly disturbing one. Whether you’re looking to save the Earth or just a few dollars, this book will guide you in the right direction.

Chris Dodd's Vision for the Peace CorpsSenator Chris Dodd (RPCV Dominican Republic) spoke at the ceremony for this year's Shriver Award and elaborated on issues he raised at Ron Tschetter's hearings. Dodd plans to introduce legislation that may include: setting aside a portion of Peace Corps' budget as seed money for demonstration projects and third goal activities (after adjusting the annual budget upward to accommodate the added expense), more volunteer input into Peace Corps operations, removing medical, healthcare and tax impediments that discourage older volunteers, providing more transparency in the medical screening and appeals process, a more comprehensive health safety net for recently-returned volunteers, and authorizing volunteers to accept, under certain circumstances, private donations to support their development projects. He plans to circulate draft legislation for review to members of the Peace Corps community and welcomes RPCV comments.

He served with honorOne year ago, Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul (RPCV Kenya) carried on an ongoing dialog on this website on the military and the peace corps and his role as a member of a Civil Affairs Team in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have just received a report that Sargeant Paul has been killed by a car bomb in Kabul. Words cannot express our feeling of loss for this tremendous injury to the entire RPCV community. Most of us didn't know him personally but we knew him from his words. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends. He was one of ours and he served with honor.

Peace Corps' Screening and Medical ClearanceThe purpose of Peace Corps' screening and medical clearance process is to ensure safe accommodation for applicants and minimize undue risk exposure for volunteers to allow PCVS to complete their service without compromising their entry health status. To further these goals, PCOL has obtained a copy of the Peace Corps Screening Guidelines Manual through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and has posted it in the "Peace Corps Library." Applicants and Medical Professionals (especially those who have already served as volunteers) are urged to review the guidelines and leave their comments and suggestions. Then read the story of one RPCV's journey through medical screening and his suggestions for changes to the process.

The Peace Corps is "fashionable" againThe LA Times says that "the Peace Corps is booming again and "It's hard to know exactly what's behind the resurgence." PCOL Comment: Since the founding of the Peace Corps 45 years ago, Americans have answered Kennedy's call: "Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." Over 182,000 have served. Another 200,000 have applied and been unable to serve because of lack of Congressional funding. The Peace Corps has never gone out of fashion. It's Congress that hasn't been keeping pace.

PCOL readership increases 100%Monthly readership on "Peace Corps Online" has increased in the past twelve months to 350,000 visitors - over eleven thousand every day - a 100% increase since this time last year. Thanks again, RPCVs and Friends of the Peace Corps, for making PCOL your source of information for the Peace Corps community. And thanks for supporting the Peace Corps Library and History of the Peace Corps. Stay tuned, the best is yet to come.

History of the Peace CorpsPCOL is proud to announce that Phase One of the "History of the Peace Corps" is now available online. This installment includes over 5,000 pages of primary source documents from the archives of the Peace Corps including every issue of "Peace Corps News," "Peace Corps Times," "Peace Corps Volunteer," "Action Update," and every annual report of the Peace Corps to Congress since 1961. "Ask Not" is an ongoing project. Read how you can help.

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Story Source: Decatur Daily

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Congo Kinsasha; Global Warming; Environment

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